After
by Lily's Prongs
Summary: Things weren't all merry after the war...


**A/N: This story is dedicated to my best friend and the biggest supporter of my stories. Credits also go to The Brave Hufflepuff for all the encouragement. Thank you! :)**

 **P.s : Not mine...**

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It was easy. It was easy to smile at her back then, when everything was over, as she sat there, head resting over her mom's shoulder, her hair slightly matted with dirt and most probably blood, her expression blissfully blank.

But as the truth sank in, it became increasingly difficult to look at her, let alone smile. He couldn't meet her eyes, how could he? He was ultimately the reason behind two people being dead in her family. One was gone forever while the other seemed like a living corpse; lost without his counterpart, permanently losing his ability of producing a milky white halo. A corporeal Patronus now felt like a distant memory.

Dean was perfect for her, he thought bitterly. He definitely was less dangerous to be with and he truly cared for her. He didn't have a myriad of people cursing him inwardly as every second passed; and to top it all off, Dean hadn't ditched her. He had. And he could never forgive himself for that, for leaving her in tears, when the only other time he had every seen her cry was in the Chamber of Secrets.

She deserved better than him. She COULD DO better than him. What did he have for himself? His raven black hair were a mess. Her soft red locks were glossy and tamed. His eyes were a torrid green. Hers were a calming caramel. He was lanky. She was curvy and much better than him any day.

'Harry', a voice said breaking him out of his reverie. He didn't need to look up to see who it was. He knew it was her. She flopped down beside him, making the sofa rattle pitifully underneath them. He inhaled deeply, letting her flowery fragrance consume him. It was same as the one he had smelled in Amortentia. That day seemed ages ago.

'When do you plan to quit sulking?' She asked quietly. 'I'm not.' He replied, willing himself not to cry. He already had allowed Voldemort's entry into his head a million times. How much more vulnerable can he get? 'Oh yeah, right. You're not', she said not bothering to hide the sarcasm in her voice. He turned away. He couldn't do this to himself. He couldn't do this to HER. He had to know.

'Why are you talking to me Gin?' he asked tentatively and looked up. She seemed mildly surprised at the question. 'Why shouldn't I?' I have a mouth, I have a tongue. I can bloody well talk to anyone I want. What makes you ask anyway?' 'I ditched you Gin.' 'And for a bloody good reason that too. Who else do you think would have gone to battle Voldemort while you made Vol-au-vents?' She asked playfully, giving him a slight shove. He was determined to not cheer up. He desperately wanted the answer to the questions he kept asking to himself. 'It was the same battle which led to Fred's death, Gin.'

Her smile faded a little and a frown played on her forehead. He hated himself for doing that to her. He hated that he had stolen her smile when she had smiled after days of misery. 'Forget that I said anything', he said hurriedly, before she had a chance to reply, making a feeble attempt to smile. To his disappointment, her brow furrowed deeper. 'You're not blaming yourself for what happened, are you?' She asked, her voice croaking slightly with pent up emotions, 'Because you have no reason to. What happened was inevitable though certainly not desired.' Something inside him broke.

'I DON'T HAVE ANY REASON TO?! WELL IF YOU FAILED TO NOTICE, I MIGHT AS WELL POINT IT OUT TO YOU THAT FRED AND THE ENTIRE ORDER WAS SUPPORTING ME. THEY DIED FIGHTING FOR ME! IF I HAD HANDED MYSELF OVER TO VOLDEMORT EARLIER, DOBBY, HEDWIG, SIRIUS AND MAD-EYE WOULD STILL HAVE BEEN ALIVE! NO ONE WOULD HAVE DIED, NOT FRED, NOT REMUS, NOT TONKS, NO ONE!'

Furiously wiping away his tears, he looked warily at her and sure enough, she seemed to be on the verge of having an explosion of her own. 'You know what? You are right.' Her body shook with barely concealed anger. 'None of them would have died then. Only you would have. Voldemort would have ruled over the rest of us.'

'Gin….'

'No. Listen to me now. Hedwig's death was just due to the malice of that "Dark Dork" and his followers. It's got NOTHING to do with you, so STOP blaming yourself for that! And the rest didn't die for you! They died in fighting for what they KNEW was right and if fighting for a better world meant that they fight with you, then why won't they do that?!' 'Ginny….' 'LET. ME. CONTINUE. And if you would have naively handed yourself over like you are talking about doing right now, can you even stop to think about what would have happened then? We would have been tortured every bloody single day. And the last time I checked, the Death Eaters didn't mind the fact that the Cruciatus Curse is an unforgivable curse. And you know what? We would have been amongst the first ones to be tortured, because we're supposed to be the 'blood traitors' and they would certainly not have hesitated before killing or worse, tormenting Hermione and many other muggleborns to insanity for being a 'mudblood'. SO, RATHER THAN ENDING IN A CONDITION LIKE FRANK AND ALICE LONGBOTTOM, I THINK WE ALL WILL PREFER DYING, THANK YOU VERY MUCH!' She screamed, her knuckles white and her fists clenched.

'Ginny I….'

'Don't. Just don't Ginny me. You want to wallow yourself in misery? Go ahead. But at least bother finding a legitimate reason next time!' With that, she whirled around, ready to storm away when she felt a calloused hand wrap around her wrist. She turned, ready to tell him off, but one look at him made voice die in her throat. 'Gin, I am so sorry. I didn't mean it to come out like that. It's just that….. I…. well… I didn-' and he suddenly found his rant cut short by a pair of soft lips being pressed against his. After a moment of shock, he melted into her, his hands snaking around her dainty waist and pulling her closer to deepen the kiss. Her eyes fluttered close, her hands gently stroking his jet black hair.

How long did the kiss last? Neither of them knew. It could have been minutes, it could have been hours, or maybe even days, but neither of them cared. For now, as the need for oxygen became overwhelming, they broke apart, both panting profusely.

'Whoa! Where did that come from?' He asked, his mouth agape with surprise as his hands traced his lips involuntarily. His expression remained to be that of utter disbelieve as he blinked rapidly. 'You needn't apologise. All of us are having their own share of gloom over the battle. Besides you do look extremely cute when you get worked up over something, did you know that?' Ginny answered, grinning at his dreamy look, ruffling his hair affectionately. Coming back to his senses, Harry gave his signature smirk. 'Definitely not cuter than a certain feisty redhead I know, when she is angry.' 'Oi! Are you trying to call me feisty Potter?' She asked, giving him a mock glare, silently biting her tongue to stop herself from laughing. 'I already got away with calling you that, didn't I, Weasley?'

'Oh yeah? I can see that someone is talking way too much than necessary. Wait till I- where is my wand?' Her frantic search was put to a stop when she a muffled laugh and looked up to see Harry twirl a piece of wood between his fingers which looked suspiciously like her wand. 'Harry Potter you are going to give me my wand back RIGHT NOW!' 'And what makes you think I will do that?' He shouted as he sprinted away, 'Catch me though you can't!' 'You wait and watch! I surely will!' She shouted back as she chased him, both their faces etched with identical smiles.

The pain was yet to fade, the wounds were yet so raw, the smiles were yet to blossom completely, but all they knew was: as long as they were together, all was well.

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 **R &R please ? **


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